There have been numerous unmanned submarines designed to explore or perform other underwater tasks and functions, as required. The submersible vehicle (i.e., a submarine) includes various systems, such as a ballast system for submersing or floating the submarine, a propulsion system for propelling the submarine, a navigation or steering system for maneuvering the submarine, and various sensors and controllers for controlling the submarine and providing information regarding the underwater environment.
For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,571,833, 5,235,930, 5,711,244, and 6,655,313 disclose a submarine body from separate sections that are joined together and include seals. U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,310,877, 1,488,067, 3,379,156, 3,478,711, 3,667,415, 3,800,722, 3,818,523, 3,943,869, 3,946,685, 4,029,034, 4,265,500, 5,129,348, 6,371,041 and 6,772,705 disclose ballast means combining water and air through a system of valves and piping for controlling the depth direction of a submarine. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,122,121, 3,176,648, 3,474,750, 3,492,965, 3,550,386, 6,065,418, 6,807,921 and 6,581,537 disclose fluid propulsion of a vessel through the handling of the fluid from the bow to the stem of the vessel. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,561,387, 6,269,763, 6,484,660, 6,662,742 and U.S. Publication No. 2002/0134294 disclose use of a plurality of sensors and structural concepts and relate generally to the state of the art. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,926,567, 6,800,003, 6,716,075, 6,629,866, 6,453,835, 3,301,132, 340,237, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2001/0010987 and Japanese Pat. Application No. 356071694 relate to fluid deflection.
None of the known patents or publications disclose or suggest an unmanned autonomous submarine as disclosed and claimed herein.